Championship caliber

SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY — Call it Championship Week I, for that is indeed what the second week in May is: the opening salvo of golf matches and track meets that will crown local athletes and teams with the distinction of being champions in their own right.

On May 13 throwers from OCIAA schools including Tri-Valley and Fallsburg competed at the Throwing Pentathlon staged at Monroe-Woodbury. Close to 60 athletes comprised of young men and women from Kingston, Tri-Valley, Washingtonville, Monroe-Woodbury, Middletown, Minisink Valley, Warwick and Port Jervis rotated through the rigors of the shot put, javelin throw, weight throw, discus and finally the hammer throw.

Tri-Valley senior Mareena DiMilia is the 2013 Thrower’s Pentathlon Champion. She amassed 2,429 points. She took first in the javelin and weight throw and second in the shot put and discus. Teammate Shannon Smith was fourth in the Thrower’s Pentathlon with 1905 points. In the Hammer Throw Competition Tri-Valley’s Colleen Jones was fourth with a heave of 82-1. Smith was sixth in the event with a mark of 78-2.

In the boys competition, Tri-Valley’s Aric Boyes was third overall in the Thrower’s Pentathlon with 3, 139 points. He was third in the Hammer Throw with a mark of 145-11. Teammates Zach Roberts and Mohib Khan were fourth and sixth in the Hammer Throw with marks of 112-4 and 98-0 respectively. Khan was sixth in the Thrower’s Pentathlon with 2,212 points. This was the first of three championship track and field meets this week.

The Donna Deppa Meet of Champions took place at Sullivan West on May 15 and the OCIAA Championships, one of the most glorious meets of the spring will take place at Warwick on May 17-18. Next week the Section Nine Championships will be held.

In boys golf, Sullivan West clinched its 10th straight OCIAA Division IV title as the Dawgs defeated Family School 207-223. Drew Billard led the way for the Westies 12-4 (11-1 OCIAA) with a two-over-par 37 at the Villa Roma. Eric Dnistrian was one stroke back at 38 as the Dawgs outpaced Eldred down the stretch to break an existing tie. Eldred finished second in the Division and Tri-Valley was third.

At Grossingers, the OCIAA Boys Golf Championships were staged on May 14. Billard, along with Eldred’s David Powers, figured to be in the top seeded group. The Section Nine golf championships get underway at Mansion Ridge on May 20. Day two will be held at Casperkill. Fallsburg’s girls golf team clinched its fourth straight Division title. The girls golf sectionals will be held at Apple Greens golf course on May 20 and May 22. While track and golf championships are underway, baseball and softball are wrapping up the regular season with sectional berths still on the line.

In baseball, Sullivan West is angling for a postseason berth but needs to win one more league game in order to do so. Their three-game league series with O’Neill began on an inauspicious note with a 14-0 loss that caused the Dawgs’ record to fall to 8-9 (4-3 OCIAA). The Dawgs needed a split in the remaining two games to lock up a berth. Tri-Valley and Eldred will be contending in the Class C and D sectionals respectively. Eldred is 6-8 (3-0 OCIAA) while Tri-Valley is 8-7 (7-5 OCIAA). The Bears defeated Eldred 11-1 as Alex Brown pitched a complete game for the win. Monticello lost to Port Jervis 5-4 thereby making their chances for sectionals more remote as they fell to 5-8-1 (0-7 OCIAA). In softball, Livingston Manor helped its cause with a 16-1 win over Tri-Valley to improve to 5-6. The Lady Bears fell to 2-11. Baseball and softball sectionals will begin May 24. For ongoing stories visit www.sportsinsightsny.com[1]. For albums of pictures visit www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com[2].